Our Reference Points

Since 1989, American wine lovers have prized The Rare Wine Co. as one of the country’s most enduring sources of great and rare wines. Producers noted with ● are represented exclusively in the U.S. or California by The Rare Wine Co.

Il Carnasciale

Represented exclusively in California by The Rare Wine Co.

Until 2005, one Tuscan wine had existed in name only for American wine lovers. Bottled exclusively in magnum, only two enotecas (out of a thousand or more) in Tuscany get any. And restaurant allocations have been limited to the likes of Florence’s Il Cibreo, and Paris’ 3-star L’Ambroisie. Members of Florence’s elite Teatro del Sale can buy one magnum per year, a privilege handed down from generation to generation.

A Unique Clone

The wine is Il Caberlot, and its fascinating story doesn’t end with its scarcity and desirability. It, and its second label Carnasciale, are the only wines in the world made from a mysterious clone discovered four decades ago near Verona. Named “Caberlot,” the grape has characteristics of both Cabernet and Merlot—hence its name. Caberlot’s discoverer—agronomist Remigio Bordini—has allowed the vine to be planted just one place outside his nursery: at Il Carnasciale, which lies atop a rocky, south-facing bluff that towers above Tuscany’s Arno river. Famed enologist Vittorio Fiore discovered this providential site in 1986. To limit yields, Fiore advised the vineyard’s owners—Wolf and Bettina Rogosky—to plant at a then-revolutionary 10,000 vines per hectare and to prune to a mere five clusters per plant. As if to presage Il Caberlot’s future, the Rogoskys buried a bottle of Sassicaia under the first vine.

Il Caberlot boasts an extraordinary perfume, sleek texture and great elegance. Boasting nuances of Graves, Pomerol, and Il Carnasciale’s unique terroir, it ranks among the planet’s most singular wines. And from the first vintage, 1988, Il Caberlot has been a huge cult wine in Europe, its scarcity driven by nature and the vineyard’s size of less than an acre. Wolf Rogosky passed away in 1996, but Bettina has carried on the work with her son, Moritz, and her winemaker, Peter Schilling. With time, more vines have been planted, but production remains miniscule. The wine is still bottled by hand, and is held for two years before release. Bettina Rogosky hand-numbers each label. A second wine, made from younger vines and named “Carnasciale,” was introduced in 2000.

“Over the years Il Carnasciale has acquired cult status among readers who crave the finest Tuscany has to offer, and rightly so. These are some of the most unique wines from Italy.”

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We are not able to ship to all states by all methods, based on the State and the time of year. GROUND shipping where temps in the shipping path are below 30 Degrees or above 70 Degrees will be held for future shipment. Please keep this in mind when placing your request and we'll let you know if we cannot honor it as requested. If the shipping method you'd like to use doesn't appear in the dropdown, please select "Hold For Future Shipment" and a member of our team will contact you to arrange shipment.

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When you place an order on our website or via email, we'll always send you a note letting you that we've received and acknowledged your requested order. Our acknowledgment of your order does not mean that your Order Request has been confirmed.

Due to the limited nature and high demand for our wines, there is a chance that orders may be placed nearly simultaneously. Occasionally demand for one of our wine offers exceeds supply. In these cases, we will do our best to fill your order but that isn't always possible.

Regardless of how an order is placed, it will be examined on a first-come-first-served basis. Once we've verified that we can fill your order as requested, we will charge your credit card and send you an order confirmation.

How does the RWC handle shipping Requests?

"Regulations on shipping wine outside of the State of California has become very complicated.

Our shopping cart accepts requests to ship to any and all locations throughout the world, however, it is NOT A REPRESENTATION OF THE LEGALITY OR OUR ABILITY TO HONOR YOUR REQUEST TO SHIP YOUR WINES TO YOU TO ANY SPECIFIC DESTINATION.

After you place your order, a member of our team will contact you within 24 business hours to confirm it and arrange shipment to a legal shipping address.

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